Nigerian Veteran Juju Maestro, General Prince Adekunle Dies at 72

The late singer

Juju maestro, General Prince Adekunle, has died in the early hours of Saturday. The veteran musician had been reportedly ill for a while and had been out of circulation, it was gathered.

A cousin of the deceased, Femi Adekunle, confirmed that he died at at 74 after spending about three weeks at the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta.

The late Adekunle, who reigned in the 60’s and 70’s, trained other popular musicians such as Sir Shina Peters‎ and Segun Adewale.

“He died on Friday at Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta after illness. He was brought in from Lagos when his health deteriorated. The Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, has been where he received treatment,” the cousin said, adding that the corpse of the late musician had been deposited in the mortuary.

The family is expected to meet on Tuesday for burial arrangement in Abeokuta, the hometown of the late musician.

The Eniyan Laso Mi singer had had an illustrious career which spanned over four decades and 15 albums. He established his band, Prince Adekunle & his Western State Brothers in the 1970s before changing the name to General Prince Adekunle & his Supersonic Sounds.

Adekunle is known to have influenced and assisted the careers of Sir Shina Peters and Segun Adewale, who were two of the biggest Nigerian music stars in the 1980s. Soko dance exponent is another artiste who owes his rise to the multitalented Adekunle.

General Prince Adekunle would have been 75 years old on October 22, 1942.